East African sailing trip – log 6


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SAILING LOG6

July 5, 2004

The SW arrives at 7:30 am as predicted. We decide wait until the tide is at its lowest before heading up the lagoon. By 12:30pm it is up to 20-25kts and enough rain is falling to make us soaking wet. Wolf is a happier with our new position but we have decided to set the alarm clock for midnight to watch that we do not swing around and end up on the sandbar.

He has done a few more repairs to the cooling system on our starboard motor and has kept himself busy with lots of fiddly chores. I find I am busy most of the day and we are not able to read successfully as there really isn’t enough light from our lights. This is something we have to sort out too.

Since I have stopped draining water from the sink, the lockers stay dry so thank goodness it doesn’t look as if we have a leaky water-tank but could just have some faulty plumbing. We have been afloat for 10 years and have lived aboard for many months without any of these problems… funny how things happen

Our supper is a prawn feast with garlic butter, rice, salad and a light dessert. Yum, yum! This is what Mozambiqueis renowned for all that is missing is the “peri-peri” sauce!

July 6, 2004

Oh what a night! We decide to set an alarm to wake us but sleep is not possible. The wind is gusting 30kts from the South making this an awfully uncomfortable anchorage. The current is horrific., even stronger than the wind turning Karibu broadside to the wind, swells continue to bash into the side of the yacht.

We listen to music until at last the tide swings and begins to rush into the channel. This is a little more comfortable and we finally get a few precious hours of sleep. There is no change in the weather forecast and Wolf decides to move Karibu deeper into the lagoon behind a sandbar we had noticed. We move really cautiously until we are in 4 mts watching and waiting to see what the wind and current does to us. Once he is satisfied we lower the dingy – pump it up and head for land.

The going is tough the swells in the lagoon are running a meter apart so by the time we set off we are already wet. We realize that we would have to head up the mangrove cove to the back of the houses and walk the rest of the way. Getting there by dingy would be too uncomfortable.

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July 7, 2004

The wind is now blowing consistently 10-15kts and is expected to continue for another day before it abates. A unanimous decision is made to go ashore even though it is still raining steadily. We don our foul weather gear and set off after eating a good breakfast.

Henny is back … the phone is unbarred … we are connected! GREAT news! But there is work to be done at the building site. The team is ready to lift the poles which support the roof trusses in place. It rains intermittently and is really cold. I spend most of day under to gazebo to try to keep dry while the guys manage to lift the poles.

We leave the camp at 4:30pm and get to Karibu before it gets dark. I write letters for Henny’s family to post inSouth   Africaand Wolf downloads our video tapes to the computer.

We sleep soundly knowing the wind is weakening and our anchorage is secure. John takes pity on us again and radios us just as we are about to get into our bunks. He invites us to join him for omelets in the morning.

July 8, 2004

Today it is impossible to ride the dingy all the way around the point to the Big House. It is a bumpy ride but not as strenuous as traipsing through the mangroves. The omelet is delicious. What a cook! I wonder if there is anything this man doesn’t know how to prepare.

By the time we finish breakfast it is 11:00am and John suggests a small glass of sherry, one glass leads to a few more and when they flatten the bottle the only thing left in his pub is Peppermint liqueur – at this stage that sounds inviting to them and so we stay all day talking and laughing, listening to John & Tony reminiscing about old times.

Strange how different environments cause one to abandon the norm and do things totally contrary to their standards… everything is different and we are slowly fitting in and becoming adjusted to this new way of life.

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